Developing and Implementing a Form-Based Code

Form-Based (or Design-Based) Codes have become a subject of enormous interest to municipalities and jurisdictions across the country, particularly those that are interested in redeveloping and revitalizing all or parts of their communities. Such codes tend to derive, in part, from urban design and architectural design guidelines that have been used, in the past, to supplement conventional use-based zoning with a set of criteria addressing the physical attributes of proposed development. Over time, the idea has arisen of combining the use-based zoning code and the form-based guidelines into a single set of legally defensible criteria for dictating elements of future development. Most codes include three critical elements — the design components, the structuring of the code itself, and the legal implementation. This session includes experts in each of these three categories to present a short overview of each respective category and then discuss the ways in which the three must work together to create a truly viable form-based code.

Moderator: Paul Zykofsky, AICP, Director, Land Use and Transportation Programs, Local Government Commission